Radia Adds European Suppliers, Aiming WindRunner At NATO
Radia continues emphasizing European suppliers for the planned WindRunner outsize-cargo aircraft as it targets NATO’s need for strategic military airlift.
The U.S. startup has selected France’s Latecoere to develop the electrical wiring interconnection system and the UK’s Stirling Dynamics to support flight controls integration for the WindRunner, which would be the world’s largest aircraft if built.
Colorado-based Radia has previously selected Italy’s Leonardo for the fuselage and Magnaghi Aerospace for landing gear, as well as Spain’s Aernnova for the wing and Aciturri the empennage. U.S. supplier Astronautics is to provide the avionics.
Other suppliers announced by Radia include Brazil’s Akaer for the pressurized cabin, the UK’s Element Materials Technology for the fuel system and U.S.-based Ingenium Technologies for the high-lift control system.
New York-based AFuzion is providing safety and certification consulting. Italy’s Atitech is tasked with maintenance, repair and overhaul and engineering services as well as support for Radia’s planned final assembly line.
The selection of more European suppliers comes as NATO announces plans for a multinational fleet of Airbus A400Ms to address strategic airlift capability gaps among European allies. The initiative is supported by Belgium, Croatia, France, Poland, Spain, Turkey and the UK.
NATO has three initiatives aimed at providing participating countries with additional air transport capacity: the Strategic Airlift International Solution (SALIS), the Strategic Airlift Capability and the Multinational Multi-Role Tanker Transport Fleet.
SALIS provides nine partner countries with assured access to up to five Antonov An-124-100s, chartered under a five-year contract with Germany-based Antonov Logistics SALIS that runs to the end of 2026.
Radia plans to fly the WindRunner in 2030, and replacing the commercially available fleet of aging An-124s is a key target. The startup plans to operate the aircraft and provide outsize-cargo services to commercial and defense customers, but also to offer it for sale to larger military operators.
The An-124-100 can carry up to 120 metric tons of cargo compared with the A400M’s 37 metric tons. In comparison, the WindRunner is designed to carry 72.6 metric tons, but its larger size means it could deploy six Boeing CH-47 helicopters or four Lockheed Martin F-16 fighters up to 1,100 nm without the need for disassembly, Radia says.
